In the case of exposure of film material in an exposure station, it is known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,617,127, incorporated herein by reference, that the film material is held in place by a planar suction plate. The film material is transported from a supply cassette in which it is wound up on a roller via the suction plate into a receiving or takeup cassette. There it is wound onto a takeup roller driven by a motor. The suction plate has several suction holes arranged in contiguous rectangles which are nested into one another. The suction holes are activated depending upon the employed film format However, this loading by a simple suction-contact is not sufficient for situations in which high precision is important, or also in which the suction plate is mechanically moved e.g. in a reversing fashion, since the film material is not held securely enough and creases can occur. Also, in order to hold the material securely, a considerable suction power is required without, on the whole, a very precise positioning of the material on the suction plate resulting. In addition, film material of a different width is to be loaded on the suction plate. This requires a pneumatic change-over of the suction holes of the suction plate.